The book of Galatians is a book with a narrow content focusing overwhelmingly on circumcision. It was written around 54 A.D., which is only about 5 years after the Jerusalem Conference officially abolished CIRCUMCISION, so there was a need to write this epistle to fully explain its abolishment. Galatians is often incorrectly used by mainstreamers to try to prove that all Old Testament law keeping has been done away with. However, the CIRCUMCISION word repeatedly appears throughout Galatians a total of FIFTEEN (15) TIMES showing that the now abolished law discussed by Paul refers most likely, by far, to CIRCUMCISION, not to the entire set of OT laws. Repeatedly using the circumcision word 15 times is not a small clue about what subject is being discussed. It is a HUGE clue. Even one single, clear reference to tithing, unclean meats, the Sabbath, or a festival is conspicuously absent in Galatians. Some Biblical law keeping verses seemingly generalize, and Galatians contains some of those generalizations where a little reasonable discernment and common sense are needed to understand what law is being discussed. Remember, phrases such as “NOT UNDER THE LAW,” “DELIVERED FROM THE LAW,” “RELEASED FROM THE LAW,” “FREED FROM THE LAW, and “DEAD TO THE LAW” appear in ONLY TWO New Testament books, Romans and Galatians. Such generalized anti-law verses are CONSPICUOUSLY ABSENT in EVERY OTHER New Testament book. When any of those phrases occur in Galatians, they refer primarily to circumcision and sometimes to the also abolished, temporarily given sacrifices, not to the general law, because the main subject of Galatians is circumcision. When those anti-law phrases appear in Romans, they only refer to the conditionally abolished eternal death penalty for sin (Romans 8:2) because the death penalty is the main subject of Romans, not the general law. The death word appears in Romans an unusually large number of times compared to other NT books.
THINK !!!
Do you really, actually believe that those who break the Old Testament laws PROHIBITING ARSON, PROHIBITING EATING LEPROUS ARMADILLOS AND EBOLA INFECTED MONKEYS, PROHIBITING THE MINGLING OF LEPERS WITH THE GENERAL POPULATION, PROHIBITING THE REMOVAL OF PROPERTY LANDMARKS, PROHIBITING SEX WITH ANIMALS, PROHIBITING INCEST, PROHIBITING PUTTING STUMBLING BLOCKS IN FRONT OF THE BLIND, PROHIBITING HARMING UNBORN BABIES (translation: includes abortion [their arms and/or legs are sometimes barbarically ripped off and their heads crushed. Verses 23 and 24 of Exodus 21:22-25 basically demand that all abortion doctors be …………. well, read it for yourself.]), PROHIBITING MEMBERSHIP IN VANDALIZING MOBS, AND PROHIBITING CONVICTING A SON FOR THE SINS OF HIS FATHER have been “freed, delivered, and released” from or “are dead to” the “law” which includes those OT laws above prohibiting such heinous behavior? The laws in red above are not mentioned in the New Testament probably because the author considered it redundant to say them again since they were already included in the long list of other laws in the often read Old Testament. Even the vast majority of non-religious, secular societies hold such intense disgust for many of these law breakers that those convicted of such sins above are either executed, placed in steel and concrete cages, heavily fined, or punished in other ways. The NEW TESTAMENT REPEATEDLY warns, OVER 105 TIMES!!!!, that law breakers, the anomos, those that commit sin, will essentially be permanently destroyed because they did not obey Biblical law. Quite clearly, then, Christians very obviously HAVE NOT been released, delivered, or freed from the OBEDIENCE part of the general law, EXCLUDING THOSE SPECIFIC, ORIGINAL OT LAWS clearly itemized/discussed in Romans and Galatians or in the case of sacrifices, referred to and “spelled out” in Hebrews 9:9,10. They have not become dead to the obedience part of the general law. Righteous, law keeping Christians, though, have been released, freed from, and delivered from the other part, the second or penalty part of the law, which is eternal death, and they have been freed, delivered, and released from the law of circumcision, too, the overwhelmingly major subject in Galatians, further confirmed in Acts 15:24 and 1 Corinthians 7:19. They have also been freed from the sacrifices, a minor topic in Galatians.
1 John 3:4: “…… SIN IS THE VIOLATION OF THE LAW”
Romans 2:13: “For not the hearers of the LAW are just in the sight of God, but the DOERS of the LAW will be justified.”
Romans 6:1,2: “…… Shall we continue in SIN that grace may abound? 2 CERTAINLY NOT! How shall we …… live any longer in it?”
Romans 6:1,2: “What shall we say then? Shall we keep on doing WRONG THINGS so that God will be more kind to us? 2 NO, SURELY NOT! We died to our WRONG WAYS and no longer live in them.” (Worldwide English [New Testament])
Romans 6:1,2: “So what do we do? Keep on SINNING so God can keep on forgiving? I SHOULD HOPE NOT! 2 If we’ve left the country where SIN is sovereign, how can we still live in our old house there? Or didn’t you realize we packed up and left there for good? (The Message) The word “SIN” appears in this and other verses, so remember, according to 1 John 3:4 above, it means ONLY one thing, BREAKING either the food, festival, tithing, Saturday rest, or some other OT or NT law or a combination of those laws.
Romans 6:15: “…… Shall we SIN because we are not under LAW but under grace? CERTAINLY NOT!”
Romans 3:31: “Well then, if we are saved by faith, does this mean that we no longer need to OBEY God’s LAW? JUST THE OPPOSITE! In fact, only when we trust Jesus can we truly OBEY Him.” (The Living Bible)
Romans 3:31: “Are we abolishing Moses’ Teachings by this faith? THAT’S UNTHINKABLE! Rather, we are SUPPORTING Moses’ teachings.” (God’s Word Translation)
JUDE 1:4: “…… (impious, PROFANE) persons …… PERVERT THE GRACE …… of our God into LAWLESSNESS ……” (The Amplified Bible)
Galatians 2:16: “knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law BUT by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.” (NKJV) “BUT” WAS POORLY AND DECEPTIVELY TRANSLATED BY ANTI-LAW LEANING TRANSLATORS!!!
A Conservative Version Interlinear translation of the first part of Galatians 2:16 is as follows:
“(G1492) KNOWING (G3754) THAT (G444) MAN (G3756) NOT (G1344) IS MADE RIGHTEOUS (G1537) FROM (G2041) WORKS G3551 OF LAW G1437 IF G3361 NOT G1223 THROUGH G4102N FAITH G2424 OF IESOUS G5547 ANOINTED ……” (still editing Strong’s numbers, will be completed soon)
The very literal Interlinear Bible Hebrew Greek English translation of the first part of Galatians 2:16 is as follows:
“KNOWING THAT NOT IS JUSTIFIED A MAN BY WORKS OF LAW, EXCEPT THROUGH FAITH (IN) JESUS CHRIST ……”
In verse 16 most but not all popular translations use “but.” The original Greek says “IF NOT” or “UNLESS,” which is significantly different in meaning from “but.” The word “but” incorrectly implies that law keeping is not part of being justified. So the literal translation is “KNOWING THAT A MAN IS NOT JUSTIFIED BY THE WORKS OF THE LAW IF NOT THROUGH FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST.” In other words, UNLESS you have faith in Jesus you cannot be justified by keeping the law, but if you do have faith in Jesus then you WILL BE justified by your obeying the law. James 2:24 says “You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only” confirming that obedience to Biblical laws is still a necessary part of salvation. The last part of Galatians 2:16 saying that no one will be justified by the works of the law is a QUALIFIED statement. No one will be justified by the works of the law ONLY IF HE DOES NOT HAVE FAITH IN JESUS, according to the first part of verse 16. Galatians 2:16 involves a discussion by Paul simply explaining that “works” or keeping the Mosaic laws no longer BY ITSELF “justifies” Christians, which means to be righteous in God’s sight. Some false teachers in Galatia had previously tried to deceive church members in the local churches by insisting that keeping the Mosaic laws and circumcision were THE ONLY requirements needed for salvation, and that faith in Jesus Christ was not needed. Please visit gnmagazine.org/booklets/NC/NC and scroll down to pages 144-145 and read “Confusion Over Legalism: What It Is and Isn’t.”
Galatians 2:19: “For I through the law died to the law that I might live to God.”
In other words, “For I through the law (law of circumcision since this the main subject in Galatians) died to the now dead law of circumcision that I might live to God, because circumcision has been abolished.”
Over 105 other NT verses assert that the “law” must still be obeyed. This over generalized verse then cannot refer to all OT laws, and Biblically knowledgeable Christians must do a little reasonable discernment about which law is being referred to here. Other verses show that parts of the OT law must still be obeyed, such as 2 Corinthians 6:17 (don’t even touch the Levitically unclean, which by obvious implication means don’t eat forbidden food), 1 Corinthians 5:8 (let us keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread), etc. So what specific law was Paul probably referring to in verse 19? The circumcised, uncircumcised, or circumcision word appears 6 times in the somewhat short chapter of Galatians 2, which is an unusually large number of times. Repeatedly referring to circumcision 6 times is not a small clue. It is a substantial clue that the former law of circumcision is the law and the only law Paul is discussing. Therefore circumcision definitely is the most logical law Paul is pointing to, which was abolished at the meeting in Jerusalem in Acts 15. Therefore verse 19 cannot be clear proof, beyond reasonable doubt, that all OT law keeping has been annulled. Christians must use logic and common sense to understand over generalized verses. They must not yield to possibly incorrect interpretations simply because the majority teaches them and pressures people to accept them, too.
GALATIANS 3:2,5,6,7: “…… Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? 5 Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?- 6 just as Abraham ‘believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.’ 7 Therefore know that ONLY those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.” THERE IS NO “ONLY” IN THE ORIGINAL GREEK!!! IT WAS ADDED BY ANTI-LAW LEANING TRANSLATORS!!!
Galatians 3:7: ” know ye, then, that those of faith—these are sons of Abraham” (Young’s Literal Translation)
The Greek for “works of the law” implies doing something primarily actively and physically, not passively, to obey the law such as giving sacrifices or performing circumcision, both of which had already been abolished or were in the process of becoming abolished (the sacrifices). In verse 7 the word “ONLY” was added by translators. Paul is emphasizing (for the benefit of hard core Jews and others insisting that circumcision must still be observed) in the above verses that it is not only by keeping the whole law (previously requiring also circumcision and sacrifices) by which Christians can now obtain the Holy Spirit, but also by faith. Remember, this book of Galatians primarily refers to the now annulled law of circumcision. Remember also that Acts 2:38 demands law observance to receive the Holy Spirit, with the exception of the now abolished circumcision and sacrifice laws.
GALATIANS 3:19,24,25 SHOWS THE SACRIFICES ARE ABOLISHED, NOT THE WHOLE LAW.
Galatians 3:19: “What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made ……..”
The word “transgressions” in this verse automatically proves that some set of divine laws was violated, laws that must have been pre-existing. If there were no laws previously, then transgressions could not have occurred. There is ample evidence that the 10 Commandments, which contained the Saturday Sabbath, the dietary laws [Genesis 7:1,2,8, 8:20], and the tithing law [Genesis 14:20], for some examples, were in full force before the Mosaic laws were formally codified. Read ALL 10 COMMANDMENTS WERE IN FORCE BEFORE MOSES to see some of that evidence. Therefore these PRE-EXISTING laws as well as the 10 Commandments and other laws could not possibly have been the laws abolished since only the ADDED laws became annulled after the sacrificial death of Jesus (“till the Seed should come”). Paul, the author of this verse, is logically talking about temporary offerings and sacrifice laws ADDED at Mount Sinai to teach the people obedience. Jeremiah 7:22 shows that these sacrifice laws did not previously exist when the Israelites first left Egypt. Hebrews 9:8-13 and 10:1 give the clues about which laws were added then removed. Those verses discuss the offerings and sacrifice laws with their rituals, which SPECIFICALLY PINPOINTS the OFFERINGS and SACRIFICE laws as the laws that were added then removed, because verse 10: “….. imposed until the time of reformation” reveals that those laws would be removed and when they would be removed which was also explained in the above Galatians 3:19: “….. till the Seed should come.” Hebrews 9:8-11: “The Holy Spirit indicating this, that the way into the Holiest of All was not yet made manifest while the first tabernacle was (still) standing. 9 It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regard to the conscience- 10 concerned only with foods and drinks (food and drink offerings), various washings (purification rites), (and) fleshly ordinances IMPOSED UNTIL THE TIME OF REFORMATION. 11 But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come ……..” The word “reformation” refers to the arrival and sacrificial death of Jesus, the “Seed.” The sacrificial and ceremonial laws of washings, purification rites and similar physical ordinances were most logically the things that ended when Jesus died, not other Mosaic laws. Since the Mosaic dietary, festival, tithing, Saturday Sabbath, and many other civil and moral laws such as the prohibition against removing property landmarks, bestiality, bribery, gossip, etc. are not laws involving offerings and sacrifices, they logically could not have been the laws that were added then nullified after the death of Jesus. So those laws, part of the pre-existing laws that were formally codified at the same time that the offerings and sacrifice laws were added, must still be in force. For additional study please read the bottom half of http://www.ucg.org/booklet/new-covenant-does-it-abolish-gods-law/circumcision-vs-new-creation-christ/.
Galatians 3:24,25: “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.” — NKJV
In all probability the particular “law” referred to here is the same law discussed in nearby Galatians 3:19, only 5 verses away, which were the temporary laws involving sacrifices and offerings that ended after the death of Jesus. Hebrews 9:10, shown above, is additional evidence that the laws that were added then abolished were only the sacrifice and offerings laws, not other laws such as the Ten Commandments, tithing, dietary, festival, and others. The Greek word for “schoolmaster” is paidagogos, 3807. This special word is used in the NT only 3 times, and according to Strong it basically means “guardian” or “disciplinarian,” definitely NOT “teacher” or “instructor,” which is a distinct and huge difference. Verse 25 therefore does not say that we are no longer under a teacher of the law or no longer under what the law says or teaches, but rather that we are no longer under the penalty, punishment, or disciplinary part (potentially death for disobedience) of the OT offerings and sacrifice laws, (the “disciplinarian” or “guardian”). Disciplinarians chastise, penalize, and punish people for breaking rules, like the expensive animal sacrifices in the past punished people for sinning. Please also visit http://lifehopeandtruth.com/bible/holy-bible/old-testament/the-pentateuch/ then scroll down to Leviticus, then down to “Sacrificial system” for further reading.
Galatians 4:21-31: “Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? …… 24 which things are symbolic. For these are the two covenants: the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar— 25 for this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia …… 26 but the Jerusalem above is free which is the mother of us all…… 31 …… we are not children of the bondwoman but of the free.”
The law most likely by far that Paul is referring to in verse 21 is the previous command to be circumcised since that is the main law discussed in Galatians and since Galatians 5:2-6 concludes the illustration of the bondwoman and the free using the circumcision word repeatedly. The Mosaic laws are separate from the Old Covenant, and the 2 covenants mentioned above are merely a comparison of what has been abolished and what is still valid. Circumcision is repeatedly mentioned in the previous Galatians chapters, so that is the law most logically being referred to here. The Sabbath, the holy festivals, and the food laws are never mentioned in those chapters, just circumcision, mentioned over 6 times. Verse 21 is addressed to those who refuse to accept faith that the sacrificial death of Jesus will save them from their sins. They want their obedience to the complete, original law (that contained the now abolished, enslaving, burdensome sacrifices, circumcision, Levitical priesthood, and the death penalty for sin [Romans 8:2]), and ONLY their obedience, to save them, not Jesus. Verse 24 refers to the bondage created by some, not all, of the Mosaic laws given on Mount Sinai. Mainstreamers quote these verses as proof that all the Mosaic laws, especially the dietary, festival, tithing, and Saturday Sabbath laws have been annulled. There is sufficient Biblical evidence, though, that those laws existed well BEFORE the Mosaic law was instituted, showing that those laws are still in force. Read the page ALL 10 COMMANDMENTS WERE IN FORCE BEFORE MOSES. To study these Galatian verses please read the upper one fifth of the page on http://rcg.org/pillar/0402pp-itcom.html. Go also to ucg.org/bible-faq/what- law-referred-galatians-42 to better understand these verses. Another helpful site to visit is yaiy.org/literature/DaysMonths.
Galatians 5:1-3,4: “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. 2 …….. if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. 3 And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. 4 You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.”
These verses are merely a criticism of law keeping when used as the SOLE AND ONLY MEANS of salvation, totally ignoring the gift of grace and the sacrificial death of Jesus to atone for sins. For an explanation of these verses please also visit ucg.org/booklets/NC/legalism and scroll down to the middle to read the section “Paul condemned perversion of law.
GALATIANS 5:4: “You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.” — NKJV
Many people mistakenly interpret this verse as 1) evidence law keeping is no longer required for salvation. Taken even more literally, concentrating only on the words in that verse, verse 4, though, can just as easily be interpreted to mean 2) that people who want to rely 100% on law keeping, AND LAW KEEPING ONLY, for justification to be saved, and not also on the grace and atoning sacrifice of Jesus at all, have truly separated themselves from Jesus, making His sacrificial death meaningless. Salvation involves grace with a certain amount of righteous law keeping. The Bible says that repeatedly. Galatians 5:2,3 reminds us again that the main law being discussed is circumcision because the word “circumcised” appears twice. The second, much more reasonable interpretation involving only law keepers rejecting the atoning death of Jesus would also be consistent with the rest of the New Testament which contains over 90 verses telling righteous Christians, law keepers who accept and trust in the sacrificial death of Jesus, to continue obeying many OT laws. To interpret this verse as an excuse to abandon law keeping also does not address the fact that 1) eating some of the forbidden foods will still kill you (if God has released us from the food laws, why has He not made them more harmless?), 2) Isaiah’s 66:17 verse revealing that people who eat the forbidden foods in the future will be killed by the Lord for that offense, 3) Zechariah 14:16-19?s prediction that physical attendance in the future at the Feast of Tabernacles, another Mosaic law, will be compulsory, and 4) that in the distant future mandatory Saturday Sabbath rest and worship will be observed by every person on the earth (Isaiah 56:6,7, 66:22,23), again involving another Mosaic law. If those laws will be in force in the future, it is only common sense and logical that they, as well as some other Mosaic laws, are still valid today. For further study go to http://www.ucg.org/booklet/new-covenant-does-it-abolish-gods-law/jesus-teaching-gods-law/confusion-over-legalism-what-i/.
GALATIANS 5:14: “For the entire Law is FULFILLED in one word, in this [commandment], “You will love your neighbor as yourself.’ [Lev 19:18]” — Analytical Literal Translation.
The original Greek word for “FULFILLED” is pleroo, Strong’s number 4137, which does not mean to replace, abolish, substitute, or perform for other Christians. It overwhelmingly means to “make replete, level up, be full, perfect, fully preach, complete, or to fill.” Fulfill means to fill to the full in verse 14, to fill full, or fill fuller. Pleroo means basically “to add to,” or “supplement.” Joseph H. Thayer, famous Bible word expert, includes the following words in his definition of pleroo: “to furnish or supply liberally,” “liberally supplied,” “to render full,” “to fill up to the top,” “so that nothing shall be wanting to full measure, fill to the brim,” “to make complete in every particular,” and “to render perfect.” Loving your neighbor as yourself truly does complete, add perfection to, and greatly supplements “the entire law.” The same pleroo word was used in Matthew 13:48 in which nets were filled up with fish! Merely loving your neighbor as yourself therefore does not release one from law keeping in general. Verse 14 is another abstract, intellectual observation which does not clearly, beyond reasonable doubt, say that law keeping can be abandoned. What if adjacent neighbors love each other, but they are also single male homosexuals engaging in a type of forbidden sex? Divine laws are needed to guide Christians in the righteous way to live. Those laws need to be obeyed, too.
If you have questions about the book of Galatians or Romans, the 2 most difficult books in the NT, PLEASE send at least one and preferably 3 quickie email questions to the letter answering departments of the righteous churches mentioned on this site. Their names and email addresses are as follows: The Church of God, a Worldwide Association, info@cogwa.org, The United Church of God, an International Association, info@ucg.org, and The Living Church of God, pcd@lcg.org. Don’t ask just one church to explain something, ask all 3 at the same time, which is what I sometimes do myself to better understand a verse quickly. Their answers will all be overwhelmingly the same, but using slightly different words. Sometimes it takes a week or two to receive a response from them.
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